LeBron James, who played on Team USA with Jason Kidd in the Beijing Olympics in 2008, had a glowing answer about Kidd’s retirement from the NBA before taking on the Pacers in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals last night.

“I mean, he’s a Hall of Famer,” James said. “Obviously first ballot. What he’s done for our league, what he’s done for so many teams. ... I think he’s one of the ultimate leaders, when it comes to point guards, when it comes to players that have ever played this game.

“His basketball IQ was one of the all-time high, and to have an opportunity to play with him in 2008 was great. It’s funny to see him and Grant Hill, they won co-rookie of the year, and they both announce their retirement on the same [weekend]. I think that’s pretty cool and that’s pretty unique and it’d be pretty great to see them both go in the Hall of Fame at the same time. But we’ll see what happens.”